Page 172 of Filthy Rich Vampires: For Eternity

Thea took a single step... and collapsed. I caught her in my arms, her body sagging boneless in my arms. Zina followed. Only Mariana remained on her feet. She raced toward her sister, dropping to her side.

I sank to the stone floor, gathering my mate in my arms. “Thea,” I whispered. Her heartbeat was faint, but I heard it and the baby’s.

“We used too much power, but they’ll recover.” Mariana closed her eyes, sighing with gratitude. She peeked out at us. “Unlike that one.”

Footsteps raced into the room, my father and brothers joining us along with a dozen court guards.

“What the hell happened—” my father’s voice cut off as he spotted Willem’s body. He stared. “He’s dead.”

“Yes,” Camila choked out, burying her head in Jacqueline’s shoulder. “I’m free, free...” Her words shook them from their shock and they turned, questions pouring from them until their gazes fell on the Queen in my arms.

“Gods,” Lysander swore as Aurelia rushed toward us.

“She’s unconscious. She’ll be alright.” I wanted to believe that—chose to believe that.

“Let me help,” Aurelia offered.

But I wouldn’t let Thea go. “I can do it.”

My ankle groaned as I pushed to my feet, but I ignored it. Holding Thea close to my chest, I surveyed the room. Jacqueline held Camila, running soothing, loving strokes down her face as she sobbed. Both of my parents hovered nearby, looking slightly taken aback by what was now obvious as my best friend and my twin held one another. Thoren ordered my brothers to check the perimeter. One attack in a night was bad luck. Two... I nodded my thanks to him, exhaustion seeping into my bones. All around us, bodies littered the floor, the vampires the demon had killed along with Selah and Willem. Blood pooled, seeping in the air, its copper tang hanging in the air.

This was a mess. There would be fallout from the Council and while the demon had been handled, the Mordicum still posed a threat, if we believed Willem’s confession.

“We’ll handle it,” Mariana assured me from where she tended Zina, soft eyes urging me to relax. “Thea needs to rest. Stay with her. It will help.”

I nodded, carrying my mate away from the horror she had faced, wondering if mine was only beginning.

CHAPTER FIFTY-SEVEN

THEA

I woke in my bed, limbs tight and aching. My bedroom was dark, the curtains closed to seal out whether the sun or moon shimmered over the lagoon outside. Julian slept in a chair beside me. His leather clothing was gone, his muscled chest and the serpentine mark he bore back on display. I’d never realized how peaceful he looked when he slept. The permanent worry line between his eyes was relaxed. His carved, sensual lips parted as he breathed softly. There was a dark dusting of stubble on his chin.

I didn’t wish to wake him, but his eyes opened anyway as if he felt the bond between us awakening. He rubbed a palm over his jaw up to his bleary eyes, which focused on me slowly and then snapped open.

“You’re awake.” The relief in his voice was palpable.

I bit my lip to keep from frowning. I zeroed in on that stubble—days’ worth. Did I want to know how long I’d been out?

A small nod from him as if to confirm my fears.

Bolting up in bed, my hand flew to my stomach. I was no longer in my fiery Rite dress. I wore a buttery soft nightgown, its touch soothing against my palm. Later, I’d thank him for changing me out of my party clothes.

“As far as I can tell, the baby’s fine. His heartbeat is strong,” he said swiftly at the fear on my face. He rose, picking up a glass of water, and handed it to me.

I loosed a sigh and smiled. I took a few sips, quenching my parched mouth. “His?”

“Or hers.” He shrugged as if to say he didn’t mind either way. That the important thing was the heartbeat itself. Julian took the empty glass. “Another?”

I shook my head. He deposited it on the nightstand and sat next to me, the mattress shifted under his weight. Julian took my hand, his touch soothing some last ragged remnant, and I relaxed against the headboard.

“What happened?” I asked him. My memories jarred through me, coming in flashes, perhaps from the adrenaline or maybe fragmented from calling on so much magic.

“The three of you killed him.” He confirmed the most important question. “But it drained you. Zina as well. You were the first to wake up. You’ve been asleep for nearly a week.”

I blinked as this processed. “A week? But the wedding...”

“Is tomorrow. Or it’s supposed to be.” His smile strained as his blue eyes took me apart, as if he couldn’t quite believe I was real. “All that really matters is how you’re feeling. The wedding can wait.” A pause. “How are you feeling?”

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